Glentress Forest (1 mile east of Peebles on the A72 towards Innerleithen) is fast becoming THE place to go mountain biking in southern Scotland, with people coming from all over the Central Belt and northern England to check out the trails.

In the last few years the Forestry Commission has been building many new all weather mountain bike paths throughout the forest. Some of these tracks are amongst the best single-track routes you will find anywhere.

Starting Point
All the routes start form the main car park (click for scalable map) nearest to the entrance of the forest

The Facilities
As well as some fantastic routes, there's also a café called Hub in the Forest (www.thehubintheforest.co.uk) with route maps, bike hire/spares/wash and the chance to take it easy after a hard day's biking. There are also guided tours available.

There is a bike shop in Peebles (click for scalable map), which does and sells all the usual things including repairs and services, and there is a good selection of B&B's, hotels and campsites for those who want to make a weekend of it.

The Routes
There are three colour coded routes of varying length and difficulty, but it is easy to mix and match the routes if you want:

• Black is the more difficult
• Red is moderate
• Blue is the easier of the routes

Black Route
The black route is the longest route that skirts the perimeter of the forest and takes you up to the highest point called Dunslair Heights. It is mostly technical single track with long climbs and descents that test both skill and stamina.

Red Route
The red route is not quite as long or technical as the black, but it is still an excellent route with good viewpoints, fast single track and testing climbs.

Blue Route
The blue route is excellent for beginners or as a warm up for those going on to bigger things. Again it is mostly on singke track, which is easy enough to build confidence but testing enough to make you want more!